Selle de Veau à l’Orientale

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •6 to 7-quart heavy oval braiser or Dutch oven
• •Instant-read meat thermometer
• •Two medium saucepans, one wide enough for the celery
• •Immersion or countertop blender
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Sharp slicing knife
• •4-cup timbale mold or heatproof bowl
• •Large oven-safe oval serving platter
• •Small sauceboat

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the saddle

   Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Pat the saddle completely dry, then season it all over with 1½ teaspoons of the salt and ½ teaspoon of the white pepper. Keep the veal stock hot in a covered saucepan. Choose an oven-safe oval platter large enough to hold the reconstructed saddle and its ring of celery, then set it aside for warming near the end.

2. 2

   Braise the veal

   Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a heavy oval braiser over medium heat. Brown the saddle evenly for 8 to 10 minutes, turning it only when each surface has taken a clear hazelnut color, then lift it out. Add the carrot, chopped onion, and celery rib; cook for 6 minutes without letting them burn. Add the bouquet garni and wine, scrape up the fond, and reduce the wine by half. Pour in 2¼ cups of the hot veal stock and return the saddle fat-side up. The liquid should reach roughly 1 inch (2.5 cm) up the meat. Cover and braise in the oven, basting every 20 minutes, until the center reaches 140°F (60°C), usually 75 to 95 minutes. Transfer the veal to a board and rest it loosely covered for 15 minutes; verify that carryover cooking brings it to at least 145°F (63°C). If it has not, return it to the oven briefly before carving.

   The braising liquid should barely tremble. If it boils hard or falls below the vegetables, lower the oven by 25°F (15°C) and add a little reserved hot stock. Ça se rattrape. A hard boil tightens the loin before the collagen around the bones has time to soften.
3. 3

   Make the curried Soubise

   While the veal braises, melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the sliced onions with ½ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon white pepper. Cover and sweat them for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring often, until completely soft but still pale. Stir in the curry powder for 30 seconds, then add the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk and ½ cup of hot veal stock a little at a time, followed by all but the reserved 2 tablespoons of cream. Simmer gently for 12 to 15 minutes. Blend until perfectly smooth, then pass through a fine sieve if any onion fibers remain. The Soubise sauce au currie should coat a spoon thickly while remaining soft enough to settle between the collops. If it is too tight, blend in hot stock by the tablespoon; if it is thin, simmer it uncovered. If it turns greasy, remove it from the heat and blend in the reserved cold cream. Ça se rattrape.

4. 4

   Braise the celery

   Arrange the celery-heart quarters in a wide saucepan with 2 tablespoons of butter. Season them with ½ teaspoon salt and ⅛ teaspoon white pepper, then add 1 cup of hot veal stock. Cover with a lid and braise over low heat for 25 to 35 minutes, turning once, until a knife enters the thickest portion without resistance but the pieces remain intact. If the celery finishes before its liquid becomes glossy, lift it out and reduce the liquid separately, then return the pieces and roll them gently in the glaze.

5. 5

   Cook the pilaff

   Reserve ½ tablespoon of butter for the mold, then melt 1½ tablespoons in a medium saucepan. Add the shallot and cook without coloring for 2 minutes. Add the rice and nacrer it, coating the grains in butter until their edges look pearly, for another 2 minutes. Pour in 1½ cups of hot veal stock, add the bay leaf and the remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and bring to a bare simmer. Cover tightly and cook over the lowest heat for 16 to 18 minutes. Remove from the heat and rest, still covered, for 10 minutes. If the rice is wet, uncover and return it to low heat for 1 or 2 minutes; if the center remains hard, sprinkle over 2 tablespoons of hot stock, cover, and rest another 5 minutes. Butter a 4-cup mold or heatproof bowl and pack in the rice gently without crushing it.

6. 6

   Reduce the cooking liquor

   Strain the saddle’s braising liquor through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean saucepan without pressing the vegetables, then skim away the surface fat. Boil steadily until reduced to about 1¼ cups and concentrated enough to lightly coat a spoon. Taste before adding salt. If it has become too strong or salty, dilute it with reserved hot stock; if it is weak, continue reducing. Take it off the heat and monter au beurre, finishing it by whisking in the remaining 1 tablespoon of cold butter. If the butter separates, whisk in a teaspoon of cold water and the gloss will return.

7. 7

   Cut and reconstruct

   Lower the oven to 250°F (120°C) and warm the oval platter. Remove the strings from the rested saddle. Run a sharp slicing knife close along the bones to lift off the two long loin fillets, keeping each one oriented so it can be returned to its original side. Cut the fillets crosswise into ⅜-inch (1 cm) collops, as for Selle à la Metternich. Spoon a layer of Soubise sauce au currie into the two cavities. Reconstruct each fillet with its collops in order, overlapping them slightly and placing a little Soubise between the slices, then coat the surface with the remaining sauce. If the assembly has cooled, place the oven-safe platter in the low oven for no more than 5 minutes. Do not broil it; fierce top heat skins the Soubise and overcooks the collops.

8. 8

   Arrange and serve

   Arrange the glazed celery around the reconstructed saddle in an even ring. Invert the pilaff onto a separate warmed plate and lift away the mold. Pour the veal cooking liquor into a warm sauceboat and serve it separately, exactly as the dish requires. Bring everything to the table at once so each guest receives veal, Soubise, celery, pilaff, and a spoonful of the clear buttered jus. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Order a small center-cut saddle from a butcher and ask for the chine bone to be cracked, the outer fat left about ¼ inch thick, and the joint tied. A boneless loin will braise, but it cannot supply the two cavities needed for the original reconstruction.
• •Choose a mild, fragrant curry powder without an aggressive dose of chili. Taste it in the Soubise rather than dry from the jar; butter, onion, and cream soften the spices, and the finished sauce should glow warmly without biting.
• •Keep the Soubise, celery, and rice covered while the veal rests, then carve and assemble without lingering. A warmed platter does more useful work here than a salamander because it protects the veal while the sauce stays fluid.
• •Pour a rounded dry white with enough body for the butter and onion, such as white Burgundy or a Loire Chenin Blanc. A light red with modest tannin also suits the veal, but avoid anything heavy enough to bury the curry’s perfume.
• •Refrigerate leftover veal, Soubise, celery, rice, and jus in separate covered containers for up to 3 days. Reheat the veal covered at low heat with a spoonful of jus, and loosen the Soubise with a little stock before warming it gently.

Advance Preparation

• •The Soubise sauce au currie can be prepared up to 1 day ahead. Press parchment directly against its surface, chill it, and reheat over low heat with enough veal stock to restore a soft coating consistency.
• •The celery can be braised up to 4 hours ahead and held in its reduced liquor. Reheat it covered over low heat, turning the pieces gently so they keep their shape.
• •Have the butcher trim, crack, and tie the saddle before cooking day. The actual braising should remain close to service because reheating a fully cooked saddle makes the collops dry.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 720g)